La spedizione siciliana 2.0

Italian 3008 – Spring 2018 – Professors Barbara Weiden Boyd and Davida Gavioli

Non abbiamo armi.mp3

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Non abbiamo armi – Ermal Meta (Non abbiamo armi, 2018)

19 Marzo 2018 (Self reflective post and thank you letter)

“Non abbiamo armi contro il cambiamento, ma adesso tu mi puoi proteggere dentro ad un abbraccio”

Vista dal balcone

Today was a very odd day, despite having to travel for almost an entire day, I was able to reflect a lot on the short bus ride from our hotel in Catania to the Catania airport. The ride itself was silent, as everyone was tired from the early wake-up, so it gave me time to clear my head space and come to terms with the week just spent in Italy with a group of people that, prior to this trip, I had only seen in class or greeted while crossing campus. This trip was not only very helpful in helping me develop a better historical and educational understanding of the island of Sicily and its geographical importance in the Mediterranean, but also a trip that helped me develop very strong friendships I never thought I would develop.

While waiting to board the plane, and throughout the trip back to the states, I spent some time looking at each of my classmates and thinking to myself how grateful I was to have been able to share such unforgettable memories and moments with them, as well as have the honor to get to know them a whole lot better in such a short amount of time. When we arrived to Boston and (most of us) parted ways, I was saddened by how we would be doing something similar in a short amount of weeks but that time we wouldn’t see each other after a week.

Being a senior is a blessing and a curse, because whether you like it or not nostalgia will hit you least expect and over small things you’ve gotten used to throughout the years. You can be reading a book for class and you’ll be like, “wow, who’s going to say silly jokes to Prof.ssa Gavioli and annoy her during office hours” or you’ll be enjoying a nice cone of lemon and strawberry gelato and the thought  of “who’s gonna sing Diiiiiiiiinooooooo” every time they see Dino on and off campus creeps up on you. I try not to get sad, so I think about how great it was to even have these small privileges every day and to try and enjoy them with the time I have left at Bowdoin.

I chose this song for the last day of the trip, because it really sums up the way that I felt and feel about this trip and my time at Bowdoin, it also helps me stay positive about the future. With this I would like to wholeheartedly like to thank my classmates, both in the Italian class as well as the Classics class, and the professors for making this trip possible and allowing us to make such unforgettable memories in a beautiful and unforgettable place.

Vista da Via Etnea alle 6 del mattino

“E se anche questa vita può finire
Tutto può succedere
Oppure a volte niente
E se da adesso in poi non ci vediamo più
Tu abbracciami senza fine”

Palazzo

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While Dulche’s vocabulary may have wowed us all at the tour of the Duke and Duchess of Palma’s Palazzo, I was not that intrigued by the tour and information we learned about Gioacchino and Nicoletta Lanza Tomasi. It was great to see the original manuscripts  of ll gattopardo enclosed in the living room glass case. Ultimately though I think growing up in the U.S. it is interesting to think about our view of monarchy and its role in society. In looking at a nation like England where there is a constitutional monarchy in which honestly the Queen has more symbolic power than real authority, I still have trouble understanding people’s admiration of the royal family. When thinking about Italy and how the monarchy was the system of government that ended in 1946, it is difficult to understand the significance or potential fascination with Gioacchino and Nicoletta Lanza Tomasi. I am glad we went on the tour but I think it is just interesting to think about how our American identity and the history of the country shapes our view of monarchy.

 

 

Seliunte

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Seliunte contained five temples centered on an acropolis. Only one of the five temples has been re-erected, this one being the Temple of Hera. Our time at Seliunte was especially beautiful as there was an incredible view of the sea as well no chaotic tourist groups around the site. In 1959 an archaeologist reconstructed this temple using the original material, this technique is called anastylosis. Four metopes of this temple which depict Heracles killing Amazon Antiope, marriage of Zeus and Hera, Actaeon being torn apart by Artemis’ hunting dogs, and Athena killing Enceladus.

Etna

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Visting Mount Etna was an amazing experience despite the high speed gusts of wind. Mount Etna is the home to several classical myths. One of the more famous stories that I have studied in previous courses is Odysseus’ encounter with the Cyclops, Polyphemus. This story is told in Book IX of the Odyssey and reappears in Virgil’s book III of the Aeneid. Although Homer doesn’t locate this meeting exactly, Europedes and Virgil situate the home of the Cyclops on the slopes of mount Etna. Many researchers and scholars have analyzed these texts and the mentions of the volcano and compared them with Mount Etna’s behavior, concluding that there is a strong connection between the Polyphemus story and the volcanic eruptions on the island. All the details from the Polyphemus myth most likely came from precise observations of past volcanic eruptions on Mount Etna.

Noto Cathedral

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The Noto Cathedral displayed a perfect example of Sicilian Baroque as the temple’s construction began in the early 18th century and was completed in 1776. In recent years the cathedrals dome collapsed in 1996 but the temple was reopened in 2007.  The whole concept of the passeggiata is extremely fascinating to me and I particularly enjoyed walking along that main street of Noto as we passed along the Noto Cathedral, town hall, and all of the beautifully crafted intricate balconies along the smaller side-streets.